Friday, May 31, 2013

We have been watching the trailers for "After Earth," and we
get the idea that this is a film about the typical hard-ass of a father
character, and the typical son trying to prove his worth to his dad."After Earth" is
that and a lot more. These
types of films can be played out in many ways and that is what makes "After Earth" a bit different. The film stars Will and Jaden Smith, father
and son in their second outing together.
Not really publicized as in the past, but not really hiding it, is that one of the scriptwriters, and the director of this Sci-Fi, battle against
the elements, is none other than M. Night Shyamalan. Don't let that throw you off, "After Earth" is solid and runs
about one hour and forty minutes and is rated PG-13.

Told chronologically out of order, and with plenty of
flashback sequences that remind one of another Will Smith flick, "I Am
Legend," we are told bits and pieces of a much deeper story. Obviously, Jaden Smith is
our protagonist, Kitai Raige, son of the famous war hero played by his real father Will Smith. Cypher Raige, who is a General in the Ranger Corps, is tough as nails and fearless. As in
typical father and son bonding films, Cypher is distant, serious, and seemingly
unfeeling. Kitai, on the other hand is
in desperate need of some fatherly approval.
Aren't we all? Kitai, we find is
the best in his class, but too immature to be promoted to Ranger. The history of the human race unfolds as
Kitai tells of the ruin of Earth and humankind’s new manifest destiny to
inhabit other worlds. They built Arks
and left, now living on Nova Prime: the
world the Earthlings escaped to about a thousand years before. A planet where, apparently, some alien race decided to leave
them a genetically engineered present. We
find the Raiges on the night of Cypher's brief homecoming. We see a few family moments to give us
insight into the dynamics of this somewhat dysfunctional military family. I don't know if this is true of all military families;
however, the relationship between father and son in "The Great Santini" comes to mind. Realizing that he may be losing his family,
especially his son, Cypher sets off to lead one more training mission before
announcing his retirement. When isn't it
right before someone's retirement that all hell breaks out? Taking
his kid along on this little vacation trip, the two find they get more they
bargained for.

Father and son speed off to their destination in a ship of
dubious design, reminding one of a giant Manta Ray. As much as Kitai wants to please his father,
he is after all a 14-year-old boy with all the curiosity that comes with that age. During the flight, when he should be
sleeping, he is out and about exploring the ship and ignores a big red 'Restricted Access' sign. Why he does that is anyone's guess. I look at my own teenager, and I immediately
understand. At this point, we are
introduced to the film's main antagonist, a creature known as an URSA. Looking something like a cross between a bear
but kind of like a spider, there is one caged in the back of the ship, and
Kitai is both drawn to, and scared by the creature. Like "Jaws," you don't actually get
to see the creature in action right away. "TheBook of Eli" writer Gary Whitta does something that one may think is
perfect this time around, he brings
out the creature at just the right time.
Throughout the story, Whitta's script leaves both subtle and not so subtle
hints that there is danger on the horizon.
The creature is worth the wait and the CGI gives us a monster that could
give one nightmares.

Predictably, there is a problem with the flight and their
spaceship is brought down. Crashing on the
forbidden planet Earth, the Raiges are the only survivors. Locked into his seat, on order by his
Commanding Officer (his father), Kitai is the only one who makes it through
the crash in one piece. Cypher is broken
and in peril, and now he must rely on his son to fetch from the other half of
their ship's broken fuselage, the second emergency beacon. The beacon is about a thousand kilometers away
in a land fraught with danger and it is up to this young cadet with no real
experience to save their lives. Shyamalan gives us two
stories going on simultaneously, Kitai's travels and encounters with the
elements, and Cypher's attempts to fix his femoral artery in his broken leg
while trying to guide his son through the landscape, which are infested with creatures that have evolved unchecked by man for over a thousand years. Not to mention the URSA creature that,
although is blind, tracks its prey by the scent of fear. Director Shyamalan's choices for filming
locations are exotic and beautiful. Filmed
in Utah, Northern California, and Costa Rica, Shyamalan presents his viewers
with the sheer beauty and grandeur of Mother Nature. We don't see much of this anymore with worlds
now totally recreated on a green screen set.
The art direction for "After Earth" is different, reminding
one of the sails of a ship and is organic in nature. Minimalist by design so as
not to distract the audience from the main focus – the relationship of a
immature son and his estranged father.

This is not your typical Will Smith film. No sly remarks thrown in, no happy go lucky
"Prince

of Bel Air," no Captain Hillard whose charisma and appeal we saw in "Independence Day."
No, this is a Will Smith playing a father whose life and his son's life
are in grave danger and how he is unable to save the day himself. On one hand, we have Kitai working to defeat
his greatest opponent in this film, and that is himself. In a Jedi/Zen sort of way we are instructed
that "Fear is not real. It is a product of thoughts you create. Do not
misunderstand me. Danger is very real. But fear is a choice." Jaden Smith plays his part perfectly. I
suppose that Gary Whitta and M. Night Shyamalan wrote Jaden's part to augment
the looks of fear and abandonment that he portrays throughout the film. Or, did
they write his part to show off his defiance that most teenagers have at that
age. Either way, we see a Jaden Smith who is more mature in both his acting skills
and in his personal confidence. Kitai, developing from the wild, uncontrolled child running
around like a chicken with his head cut off, to a young man who acknowledges
the gravity of his situation and that he is in a fight for survival. Will's
character has his own problems to contend with.
Besides having to do self-surgery, keep an eye on his kid, and check via
flying probes for the URSA creature, he struggles with his own shortcomings as
a father. We find out, that Kitai
had an older sister who died tragically.
Actually, both Raiges must come to terms with this death and how they
dealt with it in the past and how they as a family must find a way to use that
event as place of bonding. Trapped with
a broken leg in the front part of the craft, Will’s character must do his
emoting with his face and show us the anguish that he is going through.

I found the emotional interaction between father and son go from extremely harsh, to that with an aura of respect, while remaining firm. The shift is seen slowly throughout the film as we see some tender moments between Kitai and his wounded father. In some cases kind of sappy yet not exceedingly so.

The decision not to feature M. Night Shyamalan's name in the
publicity was a wise one. Although his films make money worldwide, Shyamalan is mostly derided since his 2002 film "Signs" where he promised us a big scary
monster and failed to deliver. He has been struggling in the eyes of critics ever
since. Those days may be over, or, maybe not. After all is said and done, this movie is ultimately targeted at the
teen audience or families with younger teens. Both Smiths offer characters that
family members can relate to. With Father's Day on the horizon, I can see why
this film was released now. "After Earth" was designed to bring
families together in a fun inviting sort of way.

Thursday, May 30, 2013

I like films about dystopian futures, especially if they start out as some sort of Utopia that devolves into some sort of Shirley Jackson "The Lottery" type of messed up world. In "The Purge," the Democratic Republic is gone and the New Founding Fathers of America,are now in power and have turned the United States into a strictly enforced martial law perfect civilization. A sort of self regulated Darwinian government that culls out the weak and socially unwanted.

However...

"If on one night every year, you could commit any crime without facing consequences, what would you do? In The Purge, a speculative thriller that follows one family over the course of a single night, four people will be tested to see how far they will go to protect themselves when the vicious outside world breaks into their home."

"The Purge" is produced by Blumhouse Productions, who in the past few years, have brought the world of cinematic horror, films such as "The Lords Of Salem," "Dark Skies,""Sinister," "Insidious," and the "Paranormal Activity" franchise.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Here is the latest trailer for Simon Pegg ('Star Trek Into Darkness') and Nick Frost's ("Paul") new film, "The World's End." The third in the "Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy."

Here is the official plot synopsis:

"20 years after attempting an epic pub crawl, five childhood friends reunite when one of them becomes hellbent on trying the drinking marathon again. They are convinced to stage an encore by mate Gary King (Simon Pegg), a 40-year-old man trapped at the cigarette end of his teens, who drags his reluctant pals to their hometown and once again attempts to reach the fabled pub - The World's End. As they attempt to reconcile the past and present, they realise the real struggle is for the future, not just theirs but humankind's. Reaching The World's End is the least of their worries." ~Working Title Films

"The Worlds End " is due to release August 23rd 2013 in the U.S. and July 19th in the U.K.

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

I am thinking that there is some sort of panic going on over at WarnerBrosPictures. They have released yet another television trailer for Zack Snyder's reboot of the American classic hero, Superman titled "Man of Steel" This is television trailer #8 featuring Michael Sheen as General Zod. Shannon, says in a recent interview, that he looks at his character as sort of a "General Patton." Here is a brief summary of what to expect when the "Man of Steel" comes out on June 14th, 2013.

"A young boy learns that he has extraordinary powers and is not of this Earth. As a young man, he journeys to discover where he came from and what he was sent here to do. But the hero in him must emerge if he is to save the world from annihilation and become the symbol of hope for all mankind." ~ Written by Warner Bros. Pictures

WarnerBrosPictures has released yet another television trailer in their promotional campaign leading up to the release of Zack Snyder's reboot of the American classic hero, Superman titled "Man of Steel" This is television trailer #7. These trailers are coming out so quick it is hard to keep up with them. Anyway, here is the plot in case you don't know who Superman is and why he is the "Man of Steel."

"A young boy learns that he has extraordinary powers and is not of this Earth. As a young man, he journeys to discover where he came from and what he was sent here to do. But the hero in him must emerge if he is to save the world from annihilation and become the symbol of hope for all mankind." ~ Written by Warner Bros. Pictures

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Neil Jordan is back with a new vampire film with "Byzantium". It has been about around 19 years since he directed the adaptation of Anne Rices's classic novel "Interview With A Vampire." Once again, the writer is a woman by the name of Moira Buffini. Based on a stage play she wrote the story is about:

"Two mysterious women seek refuge in a run-down coastal resort. Clara meets lonely Noel, who provides shelter in his deserted guesthouse, Byzantium. Schoolgirl Eleanor befriends Frank and tells him their lethal secret. They were born 200 years ago and survive on human blood. As knowledge of their secret spreads, their past catches up on them with deathly consequence."

WarnerBrosPictures has released the sixth television trailer in their promotional campaign leading up to the release of Zack Snyder's reboot of the American classic hero, Superman titled "Man of Steel"

"A young boy learns that he has extraordinary powers and is not of this Earth. As a young man, he journeys to discover where he came from and what he was sent here to do. But the hero in him must emerge if he is to save the world from annihilation and become the symbol of hope for all mankind." ~ Written by Warner Bros. Pictures

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Below is a clip of Kitai Raige (Jaden Smith) on his mission to save himself and his father, encountering some ultra bad-ass CGI tigers and some sort of giant bird in "After Earth." See the clip below.

With some very serious Sci-Fi coming out this year for adult audiences, like "Gravity," , "Europa Report," and the Tom Cruise film "Oblivion," Hollywood had deemed it necessary to provide the tweens with some Sci-Fi fodder as well. After Earth is literally a father and son tale of bonding and coming of age in a post-human Earth. After humanity's escape to other worlds abandoning Earth to naturally select on its own, the creatures have climbed the evolutionary ladder without humans being in the way. After Earth star Will and Jaden Smith and is directed by M. Night Shyamalan ("The Sixth Sense"), and starts on May 31st 2013.

Later this year, Asa Butterfield and Harrison Ford star in an adaptation of Orson Scott Card's bestselling novel, "Ender's Game." Once agin focused on the youth as the hero, Asa Butterfield's Ender Wiggans is humanity's only hope in the fight against the alien insectoid Buggers. Written and directed by Gavin Hood, "Ender's Game" comes to theaters on November 1st 2013.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Ignoring HAL's last broadcast to the world at the end of Arthur C. Clarke's "2010: Odyssey Two" a new group of exployers are on their way there.

"ALL THESE WORLDSARE YOURS EXCEPTEUROPAATTEMPT NOLANDING THEREUSE THEM TOGETHERUSE THEM IN PEACE"

The "Europa Report" a story written by Philip Gelatt ("The Bleeding House"), whose new Sci-Fi thriller involves a crew of international six astronauts embarking on a privately funded three year journey to one of Jupiter's Galilean moons, more specifically Jupiter's fourth moon, Europa. The mission is trying to find extraterrestrial life, by exploring its oceans and confirm these findings of life. However, following a disastrous technical failure and the death of one of the crew, the remaining crew struggle to regain communication with Earth.

Directing "Europa Report" is 39 year-old Sebastián Cordero, who in 1999 wrote and directed "Ratas, Ratones, Rateros " a film about Ecuadorian poverty. Cordero is a graduate of University of Southern California. In the past, Cordero has worked with Guillermo Del Toro ("Pan's Labyrinth") , and Alfonso Cuarón, who has his own Sci-Fi thriller, "Gravity" coming out this year as well.

Producing " Europa Report" is Ben Browning of Wayfare Entertainment (now Start Motion Pictures) who has worked with James Cameron on the 2011 film "Sanctum" that they produced together. Best of all, in my opinion, is that Bear McCreary of "Battlestar Galactica," and "Walking Dead" is providing the musical score for this film.

A promotional website up as Europa Ventures L.L.C. billing themselves as THE WORLD'S LEADER IN AEROSPACE AND EXPLORATION. Perhaps this is what Virgin Galactic becomes in the future.

click on the logo

Coming to theaters in the U.S on August 2nd, 2013, however you can purchase the movie on iTunes on June 27th,

About Me

I like movies. I studied film during my school years before moving on to a long career in the Information Technology Industry. I believe that not every movie is for everybody, however, I believe that if you know what the good, the bad, and the ugly of the cinematic arts, you can decide for yourself what to watch. I am but a guide.